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UNICRI Global Meeting on Artificial Intelligence for Law Enforcement

2nd INTERPOL – UNICRI Global Meeting on Artificial Intelligence for Law Enforcement

Singapore -

The United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), through its Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, and the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) are organizing the 2nd Global Meeting on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Law Enforcement. The meeting will be held in Singapore on 3-4 July 2019 and will see the participation of representatives of the law enforcement, academia, private sector, and from UN and INTERPOL Member States. The event will take place within the framework of the INTERPOL World 2019 – the third edition of INTERPOL’s biennial event on the future of security and policing challenges.

AI has the potential to enhance national capabilities of law enforcement and the criminal justice system, helping to combat crime and terrorism, and strengthening the security of the communities. AI can, for example, facilitate the identification of persons of interest or vehicles, predict trends in criminal actions, track illicit flows of money, flag and respond to fake news, and even facilitate international cooperation and inter-agency communication.

Nevertheless, AI is only a tool, and a tool is only as good as its user. In the hands of criminals or terrorist groups, for instance, AI can generate new digital, physical or even political threats. As these technologies become more advanced and more widely available, the potential for application by law enforcement agencies or misuse by criminals is likely to increase. While exploring the use of AI in law enforcement, it is fundamental to promote the rule of law, ethical standards and the comprehensive body of human rights law that has been developed over decades.

The meeting, which will be structured in different sessions, will be opened by Carl Alexandre, Executive Director of Partnerships and Planning of INTERPOL and Irakli Beridze, Head of the UNICRI Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics.

During the meeting, law enforcement officers from different countries will share information and experiences related to ongoing AI projects and address specific issues, such as: visual, audio and natural language processing, and AI for resource optimization.

Maximizing the benefits and minimizing the risks of AI requires an open and comprehensive understanding of the issue and the collective engagement of a broad spectrum of stakeholders from governments, private sector, academia and civil society.